Postcards
by Moriel21
Summary: My reaction to Linds leaving for Montana, Spoilers for Ep.3x18, DL Fluff as always!


**Disclaimer**: All characters do not belong to me, not for lack of wishing though, more lack of money I think...but if I could get my hands on them...well things would be much more fluffy I can promise you that!

**AN:** It's only fair I give a forewarning, this does include spoilers for upcoming eps, I won't say what they are so those of you who are spoiler free can still read it and just wonder what is fact and what is fiction! ;) Shout outs must go to all my amazing fellow D/L shippers at Talk...and thank you **Mer** for your plot bunny, and **Aud, **you're my fluffy inspiration! Please read and enjoy and do review, I unashamedly ADORE reveiws!

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She had been in Bozeman less than two days when the postcard showed up in her mailbox. How he managed to get it there so quickly she had no idea, but the sight of it sitting there patiently waiting for her, brought an instant smile to her face. She had spent the better part of the day at her old office, partly to see old friends and colleagues, but for the most part the visit was business, to catch herself up on case details and get her specific dates and times for court. The hour or two she had set aside for it, had stretched into a full day at the office and by the time she got back to check the mailbox on the front gate, the Montana sun was hanging low on the horizon. The anxiety of the day slipped away as she pulled the postcard out, and a giggle escaped her lips at the obvious plug for his favorite city. New York's skyline was perfectly captured right at sunset, and even on the small postcard it was truly a beautiful sight to behold. Not that she would admit it to him just yet, but she could definitely see why he loved that view so much. She turned the card over and felt her heart skip a beat at the sight of his familiar scrawl.

_"Montana, __I know you've got your wheatfields again, but I thought it couldn't hurt to remind you __what a quality view really looks like! Can't wait 'til you're back here to enjoy it with me.__ Miss you, __Danny"_

It's amazing the power just a few words can have on a heart she thought, just two words and she knew she was as much on his mind as he was on hers. Her thoughts skipped back to the last moment she had seen Danny just a few days before. He had been returning to the office just as she was getting into her airport cab. She had watched him stride up the outside steps, confidence radiating from him; even at a distance the man had the power the stop her in her tracks. More than anything in the world she had wanted to call out to him, or even better run to him and feel his strong arms hold her and give her the strength she needed to make it through this ordeal she faced. Instead she had sat frozen, knowing that if she allowed herself to move to him, she would never have the strength to let go. And go she must. As scared as she was to face this ordeal, she knew she had to, she had to close this chapter in her life, before starting a new one with Danny, as much as she wanted to. So she had sat unmoving, eyes fastened helplessly to him until finally he vanished from sight into the building. Only then had she been able to move, settling back into her seat, tears threatening to fall. Damn her desire to be strong and survive this on her own, his words from weeks before rose unbidden to her mind, _"If you ever need anything, I'm here for you."_ Why couldn't she do that, ask him, go to him, fall into his waiting arms…she knew without having to ask that he would catch her and hold her for as long as she would let him. Her question hung in the air, it's only answer the sound of traffic and the mutterings of the cab driver as he navigated her away.

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Danny needed a break. He had been staring at the same slide under the microscope for a half an hour now and he still could not identify what he was looking at. Of course that could be in large part due to the fact that he could not stay focused on the task at hand. No matter how hard he tried he could not concentrate. She had been gone for a week. 7 days, 10 hours and Danny checked his watch, 3 minutes give or take a few seconds since he had seen her last. He glanced around the lab, he knew he must have looked like an idiot to whoever had walked by, but he didn't really care. His mind went again to the last time he had seen her. He had been on his way to track down a witness and she had been in Mac's office. What they had been talking about Danny hadn't known at the time, but the look on her face had stopped him in his tracks. The mixture of pain and fear and determination on her face had rooted to him the floor and he had wanted nothing more than to step into the office and be the one to hold her and comfort her. Whatever was the cause of that look, whatever had put it on her face he had wanted nothing more than to be the one to erase it, he wanted to be her hero, to ride in and save the day, for her. Instead he had stayed where he was, frozen in the hallway, powerless to take his eyes off her as she gave Stella one last fleeting smile and made her way gracefully away from him. He had meant what he had said about always being there for her, and as much as he wanted to chase after her and hold her until she finally let go and told him whatever it was she was holding inside, he knew it had to be her choice. She had to choose to let him in, come to him, open up to him. Until then he would wait, for as long as it took he knew he would wait.

Danny shook his head, though thinking of Lindsay was good for his heart, it was anything but good for his current case. Coffee on the other hand, coffee could do him some good. He was on his way to the break room when he saw it, propped up on his computer just like her card had been the week before. He grinned and immediately changed directions, propping himself on the corner of his desk as he reached over and grabbed the postcard. Looking at the picture it was suddenly much clearer why Lindsay loved her wheat fields so much. Sunlight sparkled in a crystal clear sky that was bluer than any Danny had ever seen in the city. The stalks of wheat glowed so brilliantly, they could have been cast in gold, and holding the card in front of him Danny could almost feel the gentle breeze he inherently knew was lazily caressing the golden field. Turning it over he felt his breath catch at the sight of her graceful handwriting.

_"Danny, __I will admit, New York is beautiful, but look at the front of this card again and try and tell me you don't like this better! I wish you were here in person to see it with me. __Miss you too, __Montana"_

Danny had barely finished reading before he reached for the phone on his desk. He paused then, the receiver stuck to his ear, his finger hovering over the numbers. He stared again at the postcard, thinking hard for a moment before he quickly replaced the phone, and headed out the door with a smile.

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Lindsay sighed and slipped the gear shift into park before shutting her car off. She rolled her head gently back and forth for a moment as she finally allowed herself to relax. It had been one hell of a day, or what her mom liked to call, a "Jonah" day. It had begun with her alarm clock going on strike, which had set her on edge from the start and almost made her late to court. It was day four of the trial and it had been no easier to attend today than it had been to walk in on that first day. She still received the same looks from the families, the same stares from the mothers, the ones that let her know exactly what they thought of her surviving, looks that made her wish to be anywhere in the world but in that courtroom.

She slid out of the car and walked to the mailbox, determined to force the trial from her mind for at least the next five minutes. She paused with her hand on the mailbox lid, her eyes sliding up to take in yet another gorgeous Montana sunset. _Danny would love this._ She smiled sadly as the thought rose unbidden in her mind. She had been here now for 10 days, 10 days without seeing him and she knew without a doubt that the old adage was true. Absence really did make the heart grow fonder. She didn't know what she missed more, his smile, his laugh or his eyes, eyes that seemed to see right past her walls and into her soul. She could not wait for this trial to be over, for this part of her past to finally be put to rest, but most of all she could not wait to return to him. Where they would go and how fast they would move, she did not know, but she knew without a doubt that she wanted to give it a try. She smiled as possibilities flooded her mind and swung the mailbox door open. A lone cable bill greeted her and her smile faltered. Danny had received her postcard 3 days ago, she knew, she had called Stella to make sure. Realistically 3 days was an almost impossibly optimistic time frame for mail to get from New York to Bozeman, and yet Lindsay could not help the drop in her spirits. She needed him today especially. She was slated to testify on the following day and her fear threatened to choke her each time she even thought about it. She shook her head and sternly scolded herself, as much as she wanted to fall into his arms and fall apart that was not an option. There would be time for that later, right now she had a job to do and a case to close. That decided she walked back into the house and up the stairs, her mind shifting smoothly into "CSI" mode as she forced her fear aside and began working through the details she needed to present the following day. As wrapped up as she was in her thoughts it still only took her a split second to see it propped up on her pillow. It took her a bit longer to realize just what it was. Kneeling on her bed she stared at the picture, it was of a wheat field as beautiful as any Montana boasted and standing firmly in front of it was a road sign stating proudly "Welcome to New York". Lindsay stared incredulously at the postcard in her hands, knowing somehow that this was a sign. It took her a full five minutes before she thought to turn it over, and the single word on the back made her breath catch in her throat.

_"Surprise"_

A pair of hands came from behind her and slid smoothly to cover her eyes, carrying with them a scent as familiar as home and accompanied by the lilting cadence of New York accent.

"I was going to send it priority mail, but then I thought, you never can really trust the post office, who know's where they'd send it. And plus there's just something extra special about a hand delivery."

It took her brain about 3 seconds to realize he was real and then whirling around she was in his arms. He was real and solid and strong and he felt like home and at that moment she knew without a doubt that this was where she wanted to stay forever.

"You came, you really came" she murmured into his neck, she felt him nod in response, his nose nuzzling her hair.

"Nothing was the same without you there Linds," he whispered, "I was useless in the lab and besides you were there for me when I needed you, I wanted to do the same for you, even if all I can do is hold your hand and walk through this with you, that's what I want to do."

Lindsay felt tears sting her eyes and she pulled away enough to look into his eyes, eyes she knew she would never tire of looking into.

"Thank you Danny," she whispered, smiling even as a tear slid down her cheek. His only response was to tenderly wipe the drop away with his thumb and then lean in and softly claim her lips with his own. Lindsay's last conscious thought before losing herself in Danny's kiss was of just how much she had always loved postcards.


End file.
